ABSTRACT
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （COPD）， a common clinical chronic respiratory disease， has a long course and is intractable. It is closely related to many factors， such as immune imbalance. Helper T cell 17 （Th17）， an immune-promoting cell， and regulatory T cell （Treg）， an immunosuppressive cell， maintain the balance of the immune microenvironment together. In the course of COPD， the proportion of Th17 cells usually increases， while the proportion of Tregs that inhibit Th17 activity decreases. Their coordination and balance are critical in the inflammatory and immune processes of COPD. At present， COPD is mainly treated with nasal inhalation preparations and oral drugs by western medicine. In spite of a certain therapeutic effect， side effects of drugs and heavy economic burden are becoming increasingly prominent. Modern research shows that traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） has the characteristics of few side effects， stable curative effect， and multi-target regulation， and it is advantageous and promising in the prevention and treatment of COPD. In recent years， a large number of TCM clinical and experimental trials on the intervention of Th17/Treg balance in COPD have been launched. Substantial pieces of evidence confirm that the intervention of Th17/Treg balance is an important potential target of TCM in the treatment of COPD. This study reviewed the previous research on the intervention effect of single Chinese medicine， effective components of Chinese medicine， and Chinese medicinal compound on Th17/Treg balance in COPD to comprehensively reveal the potential target of Th17/Treg balance in COPD for clinicians and scientific researchers， promote relevant research， and provide references for the rational application of TCM in the prevention and treatment of COPD.
ABSTRACT
Objective:The present study was to observe the effect of Qianjin Weijingtang on the differentiation of helper T cells 17 （Th17）/T regulatory cell （Treg） and the expressions of related cytokines in the lung tissues of the model rats exposed to cigarette smoke. Method:Totolly 60 male rats were randomly assigned into six groups （control group， model group， acetylcysteine group and Qianjin Weijingtang high， moddle and low dose groups）， with 10 rats in each group. After 30 day's modeling and 30 day's intervention， rats were killed peacefully with their tissues collected. Real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was used to detect the expression of retinoic acid associated orphan receptor （ROR-γt） and forkhead/pterygoid helix transcription factor 3 （Foxp3） mRNA， enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was used to check the concentration of interleukin-17（IL-17）， IL-6， IL-10 and transforming growth factor-β1（TGF-β1）. Htoxylin eosin （HE） staining was used to observe the pathological changes of lung tissues， while flow cytometry was used to detect Treg（Foxp3+CD25+）， Th17（CD4+IL-17+） and Treg/Th17 ratio. Result:As compared with the control group， the ROR-γt mRNA expression in model group was higher（P<0.01）. As compared with the model group， various doses of Qianjin Weijingtang down-regulated the expression（P<0.05，P<0.01）. As compared with the control group， the expression of the Foxp3 mRNA was down-regulated in model group（P<0.05）， but was up-regulated in Qianjin Weijingtang middle and low dose groups（P<0.05）. Compared with the control group， the concentration of IL-17 and IL-6 in the model group were significantly increased， while the concentration of IL-10 and TGF-β1 in the model group were significantly decreased（P<0.05，P<0.01）. As compared with the model group， intervention with various doses of Qianjin Weijingtang could help to decrease the concentration of IL-17 and IL-6 in lung tissues， and increase the concentration of IL-10（P<0.05）， which were consistent with those of Real-time PCR results. Flow cytometry examination showed that the Th17（CD4+IL-17+） proportion decreased and Treg/Th17 ratio increased after Qianjin Weijing Tang middle and low dose intervention（P<0.05，P<0.01）. Conclusion:Qianjin Weijingtang could regulate Treg/Th17 ratio and help to achieve Th17/Treg balance.